The Almighty Dollar by Dharshini David

The Almighty Dollar: Follow the Incredible Journey of a Single Dollar to See How the Global Economy Really Works | By Dharshini David | Elliott & Thompson / hardback / non-fiction / 22.2.18 / £16.99

The dollar is the lifeblood of globalisation: China holds billions in reserve for good reason. Greenbacks, singles, bucks or dead presidents, call them what you will, $1.2 trillion worth are floating around right now – and half the dollars in circulation are actually outside of the USA.

But what is really happening as these billions of dollars go around the world every day? By following $1 from a shopping trip in suburban Texas, via China’s Central Bank, Nigerian railroads, the oil fields of Iraq and beyond, The Almighty Dollar answers questions such as:

Why is China the world’s biggest manufacturer – and the US its biggest customer?

Is free trade really a good thing?

Why would a government spend millions building a bridge in a different country?

In lively and entertaining prose Dharshini David lays bare these complex interrelationships through the simple story of one dollar as it moves through the opaque international system. This is essential reading that gets to the heart of how our new globalised world really works.

In addition, Dharshini can discuss:

Economic facts of Brexit - and the implications for our own fortunes

The causes and solutions to the gender pay gap

Women in business

Debunking markets and financial instruments

Inequality and the generation gap – why the over 60s are better off, but it’s a terrible time to be under 30

Dharshini David is an economist and broadcaster. From 2009 she fronted Sky News’ daily financial coverage from the heart of the City, as well as co-presenting the channel’s flagship Sky News Tonight programme.

Before joining Sky, Dharshini advised Tesco’s board on broadcast media. Prior to that, she was the face of the BBC’s Wall Street coverage in New York, from where she presented a daily business show, and covered business, economics and consumer issues in London across the BBC, from the BBC1 Ten O’Clock News to Panorama and Radio 4’s Today programme. Dharshini was recruited by the BBC while working on HSBC Investment Bank’s trading floor as its UK Economist. This is her first book